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There were nearly 20,000 employees from 303 companies who participated in our 17th annual 100 Best Companies to Work For in Oregon survey. It might not have been the best year for business, with a bad economy hanging on, but you wouldn’t know it by how our 2010 winners treated their employees.

Private companies dominate the 100 Best Companies this year, as does the professional service sector. We specifically crunched the numbers on health benefits, with our analysis showing that robust health care plans were important to being a Best Company.

What do the Top 10 Best Companies do that keeps their employees motivated, loyal and upbeat? It’s as big as paying 100% of health care insurance and as small as a contest for the ugliest shirt. And let’s not forget the free massage.

Portland’s ubiquitous food carts provide more than great food at a bargain. With low operating costs and the lure of self-employment, hundreds of immigrants, chefs and first-time business owners have turned to food carts as recession-busting businesses.

Portland Harbor is a critical economic engine stalled by the uncertainty and stigma of being a Superfund site. It will take decades to restore the Lower Willamette River and the transition will be unpleasant, expensive and complex. And crucial.

Mike Richardson never thought about whether Portland would work as a location to write, publish and produce comics. He just set up shop in the town where he was born and raised, worked at what he loved, and hit upon enormous success.

Domaine Serene unfolds telescopically as you enter the property, like some hidden world that appears only when you find the right door: 450 precisely manicured acres above Dundee with seven vineyards divided into pristine grids.